It was our eighth wedding anniversary, and I wanted to surprise Scarlett, my wife. Instead, her assistant, Liam, knocked me down the stairs. Liam looked terrified. “Oh no, did I mess up again? I’m so sorry, please scold me…” Scarlett’s heart ached for him. “Don’t be silly, it wasn’t on purpose.” Then, she glared at me. “Alright, so you fell. Just get up. Don’t lie there making a scene!” At the hospital, the woman in the next bed asked kindly why my wife hadn’t come to see me, even though I had a concussion. Was she too busy? I was silent for a moment, then turned and tossed my wedding ring into the trash can. “No, I just became a widower.” Scarlett didn’t come home until late the next night. The moment she walked in, she tossed her trench coat onto the sofa. Only to find it already piled with her clothes from yesterday, and a mess of high heels scattered across the floor. A flicker of annoyance crossed her face. As usual, she didn’t notice my pale complexion or the medications on the table. “I’ve been out working all day and night, and I come home to this mess? Are you expecting me to clean it up?” I didn’t even lift an eyelid. I was too tired to remind her that the perfume she was wearing completely gave away her whereabouts. Seeing my lack of reaction, Scarlett scoffed. “Seriously, it’s like I married a prince and brought him home just to worship him.” My lips pressed into a tight line. After we got married, I willingly learned to cook and clean for Scarlett. Back then, even if I burned my hand cooking, a single compliment from her would make my entire day. But now, I was utterly fed up. When I remained silent, Scarlett’s brows furrowed. She finally sensed something was wrong. She slowly walked towards me, reaching out to touch my face, but I subtly dodged her. Scarlett froze, her voice softening a bit. “What’s wrong? Are you still angry?” I calmly shot back, “What good would being angry do?” Yesterday afternoon, after Liam knocked me down the stairs, Scarlett was only concerned with comforting a panicking Liam. She completely ignored the blood seeping from my head. To cheer Liam up, Scarlett even promised on the spot to go shopping with him. That afternoon, while they were on a sweet date, I was alone in the hospital undergoing surgery. “I just don’t get you men. Why do you always have so much to be angry about?” Seeing my cold attitude, Scarlett grew a little impatient. She roughly tried to turn my face towards her, but her hand brushed against my icy-cold skin. Her expression finally showed a hint of panic. “Why are you crying? It was just a fall, and I just snapped at you a couple of times, right?” “Alright, stop crying. It’s all my fault, okay? Blame me for being so busy these past two days that I didn’t have time for you.” Scarlett embraced me gently, letting out a soft sigh. “But wasn’t I doing all this for our home? Can’t you be a little more understanding?” “Do you know how hard I work out there? I’m so busy every day, and isn’t it all to give you a better life?” Hearing her words, my heart felt utterly frozen. Yesterday, right after my solo surgery, consumed by despair, Liam updated his social media. Liam: Thanks for the flowers, Scarlett! The photo showed the boy smiling brightly, holding a bouquet of roses. Scarlett’s blurry figure was unintentionally captured in the background. And Scarlett, from the moment I was knocked down until now, had never once genuinely asked about my well-being. At that thought, a wave of disgust washed over my face. I pushed her away with force and casually brushed her off. “Yeah, I know. You work so hard. Everything is for me. Thank you, you’re truly wonderful.” The words hung in the air, and the living room fell silent. Scarlett stared at me, utterly stunned. In eight years of marriage, this was the first time I had ever pushed her away. My fervent, unreserved love had become the very weapon she used to hurt me, over and over again. Ignoring her bewildered gaze, my eyes were cold and distant. I was about to turn and leave. But Scarlett suddenly grabbed my hand tightly, her voice tinged with a subtle panic. “Alex, where’s your ring?”
I lowered my eyes to my bare ring finger and said, expressionless, “I don’t know. Probably lost it.” She fixed her gaze on me, brows furrowed, as if trying to discern if I was lying. I met her stare, completely open and calm. After a long moment, she finally exhaled, a knowing smile playing on her lips. “How could you be so careless? Never mind, I’ll just buy you a new one later.” “I know I’ve been busy lately, and you’ve been feeling neglected.” “Actually, I prepared a little surprise for you. Something you’ve always wanted. I finally bought it.” Scarlett pulled a small box from her pocket, then gestured to the messy pile of clothes and shoes nearby. “But you have to clean all this up first before I give it to you.” I glanced at the trinket in her hand and said blandly, “I don’t need it. You keep it.” Scarlett’s displeasure was evident. “I bought you the gift you like, and you’re not even willing to do a little housework?” “I think I’ve been too good to you—” Before she could finish, her phone rang. I knew it was Liam’s custom ringtone. Scarlett’s lips curved upward unconsciously. She instinctively glanced at me, then, phone in hand, turned and walked into the room, closing the door behind her. Five minutes later, Scarlett emerged, pulled on her trench coat, and tossed the small box onto the sofa. “Alright, I was just kidding. Go ahead and see what the gift is.” “But the housework still needs to be done. The house must be sparkling clean by tomorrow night. It’s a disaster; I don’t know what you do all day.” “There’s a small issue with a company project. I’m going to deal with it. You go to bed first, don’t wait up for me.” I watched her silently. The same scene had played out countless times over these eight years. Yet, I always kept deceiving myself. After Scarlett left, I casually tossed the gift towards the trash can. But the box hit the rim of the bin, snapping open with a pop. A diamond-studded watch fell to the floor. I froze for a moment, then finally remembered. Seven years ago, I had once asked her for a diamond-studded watch. Back then, the company was just starting out. I accompanied her to various business dinners, and we finally landed a huge deal. The day the project was successfully completed, I mustered my courage and asked Scarlett to get me a diamond-studded watch. She frowned, clearly impatient. “Alex, can’t you be more sensible? Today it’s a necklace, tomorrow a car, and the day after are you going to ask for a private jet?” “Besides, your neck is so short, what’s the point of wearing anything?” “If you really like jewelry, I’ll buy you a necklace, alright?” The next day, Scarlett gave me a cheap necklace. I always thought she just didn’t like those kinds of things. But later, she showered Liam with countless pieces of jewelry. So many that he couldn’t help but flaunt them on his social media. Liam: Why does someone love giving jewelry so much!!! I’m not an octopus, I can’t even wear it all! This diamond-studded watch is so tacky, I hate it, don’t want it! I clicked on the post. That diamond-studded watch was the very “surprise” gift Scarlett had given me. My lips tightened. I picked it up and threw it into the trash can again. Then, I dialed a number. “Chris, that famous divorce lawyer you mentioned last time, can you recommend him to me?”
A joyful voice came from the other end of the line: “I didn’t mishear, did I? You finally made up your mind?!” I hummed in affirmation, trying to suppress the bitterness in my heart. “Yes, it’s all over. I want to go home.” Chris chuckled. “That’s good news, Alex, why be sad about it? Well, I’ll wish you a happy divorce in advance then!” Chris was incredibly efficient. The lawyer contacted me first thing in the morning. I booked my flight for three days later and started packing my bags. After Scarlett left that night, she disappeared for two consecutive days. In the past, I would have anxiously asked her why she wasn’t coming home. But now, I no longer cared. At nine in the evening, I lay in bed, silently planning my departure time for tomorrow. Then, Scarlett’s friend Ben suddenly called. “Alex, it’s bad! Scarlett’s about to get into a fight! You need to get over here right away!” When I arrived, I immediately spotted Scarlett, with a frightened Liam cowering behind her. At a table, a few middle-aged men and women were still relentlessly pushing drinks. “Ms. Scarlett, what’s wrong with having this young man join us for a few drinks to liven things up?” “Exactly, he’s just your assistant. Do you really need to baby him so much?” “If he just has a few drinks with us, we’ll sign the deal right away, fair enough?” At these words, Scarlett’s face instantly turned awful. She slammed her glass onto the floor and sneered. “What? Are you implying that I, Scarlett, need to rely on men to do business?!” Hearing that, I froze. Those humiliating memories resurfaced. In the early days of the company, to quickly establish a market presence, I accompanied Scarlett to various networking events. For her career, I forced myself to stomach the nausea, plastering on a smile, drinking glass after glass. But she never once stopped a drink from being offered to me. That time, it was also a night like this. I cried, begging her to take me home. The networking was disgusting, I didn’t want to drink anymore. But Scarlett got angry. “What are you talking about? It’s your honor to drink with Mr. Ben !” She grabbed my hand. “I knew you’d be a hassle! Just keep quiet later and just drink. Let’s go! They’re waiting for us.” At that memory, I couldn’t stop myself from trembling slightly. Yet this time, facing the same situation, Scarlett chose to stand in front of Liam. She ruffled Liam’s hair, her eyes filled with tenderness. “Liam, I’m sorry, it’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have brought you to a place like this. Even if I lose this deal, I would never let you drink.” Seeing this scene, my heart instantly twisted into a knot. So, she could feel reluctant to let someone drink. Liam couldn’t drink, no matter what, but what about me? What did all those glasses of alcohol I’d swallowed over the years count for? My heart ached sharply. I turned, wanting to escape. Just then, Ben spotted me and waved enthusiastically. “Alex, over here!” Everyone’s eyes instantly fell on me. Including Scarlett’s.
My steps faltered, but I spun around and walked away without hesitation. Scarlett seemed a little flustered. She quickly pushed through the crowd and hurried after me. Perhaps it was the alcohol, but her face was pale. “Alex, did you… see everything? Listen to me, Liam’s tolerance for alcohol is really low, that’s why I wouldn’t let him drink. It’s not what you think…” She gripped my wrist tightly, explaining anxiously. Soon, Liam also caught up, grabbing my other hand with a whimper. “Alex, I’m sorry. It’s all my fault for not drinking that glass, which made you and Scarlett argue. Please don’t be angry, I’ll go drink it now…” Scarlett immediately shot him a fierce glare. “Why did you follow us? Go back, aren’t you making enough of a scene already?!” “You don’t need to explain anything to me.” A wave of irritation washed over me, and I forcefully pushed them both away. Liam, however, suddenly slipped, crashing straight into the corner of a table. Blood gushed from his forehead, and he continued to apologize. “Scarlett, I’m sorry, it’s all my fault… am I going to be disfigured?” Seeing him injured, Scarlett instantly panicked. She turned and roared at me, “Alex, if you’re sick, go get help! What kind of tantrum is this? If anything happens to Liam, I swear I won’t let you get away with it!” At that moment, Scarlett’s face was terrifyingly dark. I stood there, stunned, looking at Scarlett, who was solely focused on protecting Liam. Suddenly, I remembered. Nine years ago, she protected me just like that. I was still in college then, and I ran into trouble on my way back to campus. She was the one who helped me out. That was the first time I met Scarlett. Later, she was the one who took my hand first. She was the one who stood up for me when I was wronged, the one who took me to the hospital when I was sick. Under a sky full of fireworks, she was the one who proposed to me. “Alex, marry me. We’ll be the happiest couple in the world.” Faintly, Liam’s whimpering voice reached my ears. Then, a sharp slap landed with a crack, sending me tumbling to the ground. I looked up to see Scarlett’s eyes, icy and bone-chilling, frighteningly unfamiliar. “Alex, you disgust me. That slap is your lesson. Don’t think that just because I’m good to you, you can run wild.” With that, she didn’t give me a chance to explain, helped Liam up, and left without looking back. This winter seemed unusually cold. After an unknown amount of time, I shakily got up, wrapped my coat tighter, and slowly walked back. Back home, I silently finished packing, placing the signed divorce papers in the most conspicuous spot. The next afternoon, Scarlett’s call came again. At this moment, I was already at the airport with my suitcase. “Alex, if you don’t want to get divorced, get your ass over here and apologize to Liam right now, and this whole thing will be over—” “No need,” I interrupted her. “I’ve already prepared the divorce agreement. You just need to sign it.” With that, I hung up, blocked her on all platforms, and boarded the plane home.
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